Note Frequency Calculator

Sound is a wave which travels through a medium, such as air or water. All sounds consist of sine waves with different frequencies and amplitudes. Amplitude determines volume, and frequency determines pitch.

Technically, frequency is the number of completed wave cycles per second, and is expressed in Hertz. For example the frequency of the musical note C4 is approximately 262 Hz. This means the sound wave has 262 cycles per second.

Musical notes have determined frequencies. For example, in the twelve-tone equal temperament (the most common tuning system since the 18th century), note A4 has a frequency of 440 Hz.

If one note is double the frequency of another, they sound similar, so we designate them with the same letter. We then add a number to represent the octave - that is to say whether we mean a higher or lower D.

This way of representing musical notes if called the scientific pitch notation.

If you'd like to know how to go from a musical note in hertz to semitones, you can use the semitone calculator. And if you want to learn the basics of harmony, head to our harmonic series calculator!

1. Choose the name of the note. Note pairs like F♯ and G♭, or C♯ and D♭, are enharmonic equivalents, which means they denote the same sound.

2. Choose an octave.

3. By default, the calculator rounds the frequency of the musical note to two decimal places, but you can increase the precision.

Below you can see a table with the rounded frequencies of musical notes in Hertz: